Taman Busuk Nomads

The mountain folk of the Taman Busuk region comprisethe greater proportion of humans living in the Khalkistsand the valleys snaking through them. The civilizedNerakans have good reason to fear their savage cousins,for while the two groups share a common ancestry, themountain nomads of the Taman Busuk have no patiencefor those who do not respect the land nor live directlyupon it. Although the Queen of Darkness recruited mostof these bloodthirsty people for her armies in the War ofthe Lance, alongside the men of Jelek and Sanction, theDragonarmy officers soon learned to keep them as separateas possible from their city-dwelling neighbors.Mountain life is rough, and the Khalkists are home toa host of terrible and fierce creatures. Ogres, goblins, andtrolls are the least of a nomad’s worries. Even before theCataclysm, when the natives of the region were ignoredprovincial subjects of the Kingpriest, each nomad livedand died in the basalt spires of his homeland, and eachgeneration has grown progressively stronger. Death isquick and sudden for the Taman Busuk nomads, butthe nomads across the plateaus and peaks have survivedtremendous challenges already.Ethnically, the Taman Busuk nomads are related tothe Abanasinian Plainsfolk and the Ergothians; AckalErgot was from this region. They are rugged, swarthyfolk with skin ranging from light to dark, depending onthe individual tribe. Nomads organize themselves intoextended family tribes with individual totems, icons,ancestor spirits, or other quasi-religious trappings; thosewho live near the ancient ruins of Godshome adopt oneof the true gods as a tribal patron, assigning the deity ameasure of ancestral honor. Therefore, it is common foroutsiders to find extraordinarily detailed shrines andtemples in the middle of nomadic settlements.